Free Essay: Do Patients Receive Better Quality Care in Non-Profit or For-Profit Facilities?

One of the most important decisions that families and individuals must make when looking for long-term care of their loved ones is the right health facility. The two major facilities in the country are a non-profit facility or a for-profit facility and deciding one of these might prove the difference in the quality of care provided. Nursing homes give nursing aid and avail of skilled nurses who can give professional care to individuals who are not able to perform various tasks on their own. Not for profit, nursing facilities are those that do not pay property taxes, federal incomes taxes among other financial obligations and their main role is to serve the nearby community (Gandhi 110). For-profit nursing facilities, on the other hand, have a sole purpose of serving people while at the same time they make a profit. Shareholders or private investors usually own these facilities and hence they are obligated to comply with all the stipulated state and federal financial obligations (Herrera et al. 5). Due to their nature, these two different types of health facilities usually offer services differently hence, the quality of care given is not always the same since sponsorship and ownership usually affect decision making and running of these facilities. Patients in not-for-profit nursing homes receive more quality care as compared to their counterparts who are in for-profit nursing homes because not-for-profit facilities have a higher staffing level to attend to all patients, the caregivers of not-for-profit are also much happier as compared to those in for-profit facilities and they dedicate most of their resources to patient care; however, if for-profit health facilities were to make giving quality care their priority, they would have better results.

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Not for profit, nursing homes have more caregivers or a higher staffing level. Staffing level in nursing homes is considered as a significant determinant of quality of care given (Lerner 104). More nurses staffing means more quality of care given since the patients are more likely to get one on one care during their time in the hospital. Studies have shown that not for profit health, facilities have a higher ratio of nurses and other staff to the number of residents they serve as compared to the facilities run for profit (Gandhi 107). Additionally, the number of registered nurses in non-profit nursing homes is much higher as compared to that of for-profit facilities (Pennel et al. 3). For-profit, nursing facilities tend to minimize the number of working staff so that the overall expenditure does not exceed the income. Regardless of the quality of care given to the patients, the ownership of for-profit facilities is always concerned with what the numbers show, that is if the facilities are making progress or not. Therefore having more nurses and other staff can mean the loss of income which is something the owner cannot allow. On the other hand, not-for-profit facilities are only concerned with how the community can benefit hence they always hire enough staff to meet the never-ending demand of healthcare. Moreover, the majority of patients in nursing hopes requires frequent attention since some are unable to do anything for themselves. Therefore, limiting the number of staff can really have detrimental effects on the quality of care given to patients.

Low staffing level means more deficiencies in the nursing homes (Lerner 105). Not-for-profit nursing homes not have more registered nurses but also have more residence care aid and licensed practical nurse which means that even during an emergency, the staff cannot be overwhelmed (Paul III et al. 2). Due to the higher number of staff, not for profit homes tend to give more working hours meaning more service delivery. When the working hours are increased, patients are more likely to spend more time with their caregivers and this greatly reduces deficiencies in not for profit homes. Healthcare deficiencies in any facility is a major sign of thing not going well in terms of care given. Various public regulatory agencies have given reports showing that for-profit nursing homes have many healthcare deficiencies putting the lives of patients and the residents at jeopardy (Paul III et al. 5). The main aim for any facility is to provide quality care to the patients while still chasing the goals and objective it has. All in all, inventing in staffing is a great determinant of whether a health facility will provide better services or not and in this case, for-profit nursing homes fail to meet this requirement.

Staff working at nonprofit nursing facilities tend to be much happier. Non-profit nursing homes not only do they have the ability to hire many enough staff but they also keep them satisfied and motivated. A happy staff is more likely to give the best quality of care since they love what they do which is serving the patients. Some factors that attributed to the nonprofit homes having happy staff are that the staff have the chance to contribute to the facility policies meaning that they can address any issues they may be facing and they have supportive managers who guide them throughout their course of work (Lerner 103). Additionally, nurses at these institutions are more confident with how the facilities run and they know any available resource that they may need will be fully funded since all the profit goes back to managing the particular institution.

Since nonprofit nursing homes have enough supply of staff, the existing staff does not strain or overwork. These employees work fewer hours as compared to their counterparts in for-profit facilities who sometimes have to work continuously. Job satisfaction is greatly connected to the quality of care given since a tired or frustrated staff is more likely to careless for patients while they are undergoing various kind of stress. On the other hand, the happier staff is expected to deliver his or her best services every time. Furthermore, a happier staff is more likely to stay in one job and they have the satisfaction and the motivation they need. This reduces the turnover rate meaning that nurses will form a close bond with the community since they work in one place for a number of years. For-profit health facilities have high turnover which not only has a financial impact but also impacts the quality of care given (Gandhi 112).

Nonprofit facilities have the community as their first priority. From the time they are formed, non-profit facilities develop a mission to serve the community and hence all their actions and activities are dedicated to seeing how the lives of those who surround the facility can be improved. These health institutions have a mission-driven attitude from how they run to how they hire their staff. The extra income that may be realized from its operations is reinvested back to the community through various health education programs and engaging in charitable events (Herrera et al. 5). In some cases when they have extra income, the non-profit health facilities can dedicate it to other nonprofit organization, support staff members, and engage in fundraising, community groups among other beneficial activities. These sort of activities such as health education to the community usually makes the quality of life of the people around the institution better. Prevention is much better as compared to treating and non-profit health facilities take this seriously.

The for-profit health facilities main aim is to make a profit since the people who invested in building the institutions expect financial results (Brownie and Nancarrow 1). Most of the profit they get is shared among the parties involved and less is reinvested back to improving the quality of care given to patients. As per the law, nonprofit facilities are not supposed to take away any money per personal endeavors and in turn, they do not pay taxes. This gives them more freedom and ability to invest in their patients by strengthening the workforce, buying better equipment and other necessary materials needed to improve the quality of care they give to patients.

In conclusion, both non-profits and for-profit facilities are important in our society but their different setup and management make them offer varying level of quality of care. Non-profits facilities for the sole purpose of serving the community while for-profit aim at serving while at the same time making a profit. Non-profits facilities tend to give better care to their patients since they have high-level staffing, their staff are much happier and all their income and efforts are reinvested back to the patients.

Work Cited

Brownie, Sonya, and Susan Nancarrow. "Effects of person-centered care on residents and staff in aged-care facilities: a systematic review." Clinical interventions in Aging 8 (2013): 1.

Gandhi, Sabina Ohri. "Differences between non-profit and for-profit hospices: patient selection and quality." International journal of health care finance and economics 12.2 (2012): 107-127.

Herrera, Cristian A, Gabriel Rada, Lucy Kuhn-Barrientos, Ximena Barrios, and Susanne Hempel. "Does Ownership Matter? an Overview of Systematic Reviews of the Performance of Private For-Profit, Private Not-for-Profit and Public Healthcare Providers." Plos One. 9.12 (2014). Print.

Lerner, Nancy B, Meg Johantgen, Alison M. Trinkoff, Carla L. Storr, and Kihye Han. "Are Nursing Home Survey Deficiencies Higher in Facilities with Greater Staff Turnover." Journal of the American Medical Directors Association. 15.2 (2014): 102-107. Print.

Paul III, David P., et al. "Quality of care and profitability in not-for-profit versus for-profit nursing homes." (2016).

Pennel, C.L, K.R McLeroy, J.N Burdine, D Matarrita-Cascante, and C.L Pennel. "Nonprofit Hospitals-Approach to Community Health Needs Assessment." American Journal of Public Health. 105.3 (2015). Print.